Coaches Academy Kicks Off Recruitment Drive

Youngsters aged 16 and 17 are being offered the opportunity to get into coaching with one of the country’s leading sports organisations. The Foundation of Light, the registered charity of Sunderland AFC, is now recruiting for participants on its Coaches Academy programme widely-regarded as the ideal ‘first step’ for teens looking for a career in coaching. Ideal for those who left school in Summer 2017, the two-year programme offers a combination of qualifications, on-the-job mentoring and work experience alongside some of the country’s best coaching staff with a guaranteed job interview with the Foundation at the end of the programme. For youngsters and parents wanting to know more there is a special ‘Open Evening’ planned for Monday, 15th January at the Stadium of Light at 7pm.  

This is a fantastic opportunity for those who left school in 2017 and haven’t made the career progress they hoped they would have. The Coaches Academy is one of our flagship programmes and it perfectly balances the qualifications, skills and experience someone would need to become a sports coach.

Jamie Wright, Foundation of Light Assistant Director

Nathan Kew, former Coaches Academy participant who is now coaching at Sunderland AFC’s Academy of Light added: “The Coaches Academy gave me everything I needed to kick-off my career. “I never imagined that within four years of leaving school I’d be coaching at the Academy of Light but the Coaches Academy made that possible and I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend it to others.” Every participant who completes the course is guaranteed an interview with the Foundation of Light, with many former participants going on to senior coaching roles within the organisation and representing Sunderland abroad in places including Ireland, Spain and Singapore. From September 2018, the classroom-based aspects of the Coaches Academy will be hosted within the Beacon of Light, the Foundation’s state-of-the-art community sports and education facility. The programme offers BTEC Level 3 and Level 2 qualifications dependent upon GCSE results, alongside FA Football Coaching Level 1 and Level 2 Awards.